


The Soldier

by Chasyn



Series: The Butterflies [12]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Butterflies, Butterflies in your stomach, Cuz Christopher, Drabble, Eddie is Best Dad, Eddie is hesitant, Eddie's Obsessed with Buck's Birthmark, M/M, Mentioned Eddie/Shannon, No Dialogue, Short, Soulmate Symptoms, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, Weird Series, You get butterflies in your stomach when you meet your soulmate, earthquake, i am too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-20
Updated: 2019-02-20
Packaged: 2019-11-01 09:09:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17864534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chasyn/pseuds/Chasyn
Summary: And he had to physically force himself to turn around. Because the Butterflies were telling him to run to Buck, to reach out for the man and caress the mark above his eye. Eddie had to stomp down the yearning.  Christopher had to come first. And whoever Eddie was meant to be with would have to understand that, too.





	The Soldier

**Author's Note:**

> Here comes Eddie! 8D Some liberties were taking with Shannon and stuff. Eddie and Shannon talked briefly about their relationship. But still hard to pinpoint an exact timeline.
> 
> Also, if anyone is interested in keeping me company while I type (or just pestering me on a daily basis), I have a Discord chat server.  
> <https://discord.gg/JGgeWp3>  
> Chas#0048

Eddie knew. Eddie knew the moment he walked into the station. He could feel the fluttering as he walked across the large room towards the locker room. There were people all around, smiling and welcoming and pointing him the right way. But the fluttering was still mild. Just tiny, little tentative flaps. Eddie stepped inside the locker room and dropped his bag, as he remembered the first time he felt the tiny, nervous fluttering.

The first time felt the Butterflies, he was just starting his first year of college. He planned to take a few courses, a few prerequisites to get out of the way and then he was planning on enlisting in the army. And then he met her, Shannon, in one of his classes. She was pretty and smart and nice. And things got a little... _fuzzy_ around her. It wasn't the big explosion he'd heard about. Some said they lost all senses the first time, that the only thing that mattered was the other person, and that the Butterflies fluttered so hard, some thought they were sick or dying. But all Eddie felt was tiny, miniscule wing movements, like maybe he'd eaten something that didn't agree with him, but would go away if he drank something fizzy. And his head felt like fog, but a light morning fog that was already dissipating.

It was disappointing. But Eddie stuck with Shannon because he thought he was supposed to. He thought fate had chosen her to be his other half. He _liked_ her fine, liked her _enough_. He just... he wasn't sure he ever felt the overwhelming, all consuming love that your soulmate was supposed to be. The other half of yourself. That one person that made you feel whole.

And then Shannon got pregnant. Eddie was in his first tour of duty when he got the phone call. And Christopher was almost a year old when Eddie first got to meet him. Christopher became his whole life when Eddie was home. He might have neglected his wife. In hindsight, he knew he had. But he had such little time before he had to go back and he needed to spend every moment he could with his kid.

Eddie was nearly done with his two year tour when he got the call about Christopher's diagnosis. Cerebral palsy. Shannon was beside herself, crying about it being her fault somehow, because Christopher had gotten stuck during the birth. Eddie wasn't proud of his decision, and later regretted it since he made it, but he reenlisted. He told himself it was for medical bills. But he was running away, leaving Shannon to take care of everything. And it was too late when he realized that was exactly what he was doing. He was already signed up. He had to serve out the full tour.

Things were never the same after that. He returned home and dove right back in to being a father. Christopher again became his life, his top priority. Christopher was almost four and he needed the attention. Shannon again fell through the cracks. Eddie didn't try hard enough to keep her around, to keep her happy. And then one day, she was just gone. She'd left, moved over 1,200 miles away, to take care of a dying parent. She never asked Eddie and Christopher to come. She hardly seemed to care anymore. Her calls became fewer and fewer as the months went by. She called to tell Eddie her mother had passed away. But Shannon didn't say she was coming back and Eddie didn't ask her to.

Christopher was almost eight when Eddie moved them from Texas up to California. He told his family, and Christopher, it was because of his new job. He'd passed his training with flying colors and every top firehouse in the country seemed to be vying for his attention. The LAFD was one of the best. And it just so happened to be less than an hour's drive from where Shannon ran away to. Eddie had no real love for his wife anymore, if he ever did. But one day, Eddie hoped maybe Christopher and her could have some sort of relationship. Christopher still asked about her occasionally. And it killed Eddie when Christopher would get sad after.

So Eddie was familiar with the Butterflies. He just didn't know how he felt about fate trying to match him up with someone again. He would never count his time with Shannon as a mistake, because she gave him Christopher. But he'd be lying if he said Shannon was his soulmate. Eddie ignored the fluttering as he pulled off his shirt and quickly got dressed. And then he stopped. The Butterflies went from their light fluttering, to all out wild fluttering. Like they were in a panic or something. Eddie wavered a moment on his feet, putting a hand against the lockers to brace himself. He took a deep breath and turned, looking out through the glass.

And that's when he saw the man, the man glaring back at him. The man with the intense blue eyes and the oddly endearing birthmark above his eye. A man. Eddie had no qualms about that. But... what would Christopher think? Christopher, who was the most important person in Eddie's life, who sometimes asked about his mother and when she was coming home. How would Christopher react when he found out his dad had another soulmate, who was a man. Eddie was seriously considering putting in a request transfer on his first day. Because maybe this was too soon and too hard.

And then the sirens rang. And everything else was forgotten as Eddie climbed on the truck with his new teammates. Buck, he'd been told by someone, was the name of the man with the birthmark. But Buck wasn't on Eddie's mind. Christopher was. That was who he was concentrating on until the truck stopped. Eddie took a deep breath and followed Buck into the fray. Work helped keep his mind off his son. Christopher was safe at school. And Eddie had people to save.

Buck slipped at one point and Eddie felt his heart in his throat and the fluttering again. Eddie moved quickly, reaching out to grab Buck's wavering hand and he pulled the man back up to his feet. Buck smiled at him for a moment. And then they went back to work. Because they had people to save. And Eddie had a potential soulmate to keep his eyes on.

The day settled down and they get back to the station. Everyone was sitting around, talking and smiling and being grateful for making it through the day. But Eddie couldn't hear them. He couldn't focus on anything. Except Christopher. He needed to get to Christopher. He needed to make sure his son was alright. Then maybe after... Eddie's eyes met Buck's. He sucked in a breath. And he had to physically force himself to turn around. Because the Butterflies were telling him to run to Buck, to reach out for the man and caress the mark above his eye. But no. Eddie had to stomp down the yearning, because he had to check on Christopher. Christopher _had_ to come first. He _always_ would. And whoever Eddie was meant to be with would have to understand that, too.

Eddie didn't slow his steps. He headed towards the door and forced himself to not look back as he pushed the door open and walked thought it. But he _felt_ Buck suddenly and looked over. Buck was beside him. He didn't say anything, just grabbed Eddie's hand and pulled him towards the parking lot. Buck pulled out his keys and unlocked his jeep. Eddie didn't hesitate as he climbed in the passenger seat. They didn't speak as they weaved through the traffic. Eddie didn't tell Buck where to go. And he couldn't remember if he mentioned the school earlier or if Buck just somehow _knew_.

But it didn't matter. Buck pulled the jeep to a stop in front of the school and Eddie was out the door before the vehicle even stopped. He raced up the stairs and into the building. Christopher was standing there, smiling. Eddie raced forward and picked the kid right up off his feet. He hugged him tightly and spun him around. Christopher was okay. He was alright. Deep down, Eddie knew he would be. But he just needed to be sure. Everything was now alright.

Eddie placed Christopher back on the floor and stood up. He smiled down at his son. And then something made him stop. The fluttering. The Butterflies were back. They started tentative for a moment. And as Eddie breathed out, relaxing more because Christopher was okay, the Butterflies intensified. Like this morning. Eddie turned, looking out the door.

Buck was standing outside at the top of the steps, watching. His hands were in his pockets and he looked hesitant.

Eddie glanced back at Christopher. He held his finger up for a moment and smiled. Christopher nodded and Eddie turned. He raced towards the doors and didn't stop. He didn't think or hesitate any longer. Buck barely had time to pull his hands out of his pockets before Eddie was on him. Eddie wrapped his arms around Buck's neck and pulled him closer. He pressed his lips against Buck's. And it was soft and sweet. Just barely a brush before Eddie's arms lowered and he hugged Buck impossibly close. He rested his head against Buck's shoulder and felt the other man tightened his arms around his waist.

And it was just _right_.


End file.
